Chapter Six: Showdown
Naruto shifted and mentally sent a command to a few of his shadow clones.
As everyone formed up to turn to where the masked man stood and took stances. Tenten, Guy-sensei, and Lee were not far off. But he kept casual and turned to the masked man. "Alright, fair enough, talk.
"Who are you, and what do you want?"
The masked man moved forward. "I am Madara Uchiha. Or Tobi. Call me what you wish; my name is no importance."
"Not to you, maybe," said Naruto. "So, I'm guessing you're in charge of the Akatsuki now. Is Konan alive?" He hoped she was.
"Quite. She is no longer a part of my organization," said Madara. "Although, if you asked her, she might say that I am no longer part of her organization. The Akatsuki was founded in two parts by Yahiko and myself. Those sides joined, and the exact details of who was leading who was... vague.
"Nagato and I were... partners of a sort. When Nagato went one way, so did all the Akatsuki loyal to him."
"Oh, good to know," said Naruto. "What do you guys even want anyway? Your motive keeps on changing."
"You seem very calm, given that I destroyed your dream," noted Madara.
"Oh right, Sasuke, you mean?" mused Naruto. "Well, I haven't fully gotten over it, but he made his own choices. I have enough respect for him as a person to accept the fact. I'll do what I can for him, but part of being a friend is letting someone go when they want nothing to do with you.
"Nothing I can do about it, so I'll focus on doing what I can."
"I wonder if you would be so calm if your friends were hunted down one by one in war," noted Madara.
"Maybe, maybe not. Are you planning on finding out?" asked Naruto, checking to see Sakura and Neji on hand.
"As entertaining as that would be, no," said Madara. "No I am not.
"I have no interest in you save as getting you out of my way and negotiation is a viable solution. So, has Danzo told you what happened in the Uchiha Massacre?"
"Hmm?" asked Naruto.
"How I convinced Sasuke to join my side?" asked Madara.
Naruto thought about what he was going to say. "You're going to tell me, aren't you?"
"The Uchiha Clan's demise was not a homicide," said Madara. "It was a genocide.
"Itachi Uchiha's slaughter of them was done on the orders of the Hidden Leaf Elders. Danzo, Homura, Koharu, and Sarutobi."
"Impossible! The Third Hokage would never do something like that!" said Sakura.
"You're a student of history, Ms. Haruno," said Madara. "Surely you must remember one or two incidents like it? The sort they don't teach you in normal ninja school."
"Why would they want to kill the Uchiha?" asked Naruto. "What could they gain from slaughtering one of their strongest clans?"
"Why else?" asked Madara. "Because they were a threat. Other people from the village persecuted the Uchiha Clan. The villagers hated and feared them because of what they were capable of. They chose to discriminate against them.
"This led to rising tensions and eventually, plans for a coup.
"Fugaku Uchiha, Sasuke's father, attempted to negotiate a settlement. But the hardliners in both factions refused to compromise. As the situation deteriorated, civil war became imminent. Even so, the Leaf Village had yet to recover from the Nine-tails attack. Thus, they could not risk being further weakened.
"Especially after the Hyuga Affair had made them look weak.
"So, they arranged for Itachi Uchiha to purge the entire clan. My own contribution was as an observer and also, an assistant to Itachi."
"And how many people knew about this?" asked Neji.
"The matter was a closely guarded secret. But I imagine Danzo and the Elders were heavily involved," mused Madara.
"Neji, do you think the Leaf is capable of something like this?" asked Naruto.
"I doubt it," noted Neji. "If I were Danzo, I'd have ordered all the adults massacred. Then I would have had the children raised in controlled circumstances. That way, you wouldn't lose the bloodline.
"Danzo is no fool, and the Third Hokage would draw the line at killing innocent children."
"And there you may thank me for my assistance," said Madara.
Naruto went cold. "...You killed the children of your own clan?"
"My Clan is dead," said Madara. "The Uchiha I saw before me was a twisted parody of the warrior race they once were. Their very existence was a mockery of everything they had once stood for. And once my plans are complete, there will be no need for a Sharingan."
Naruto looked to Sakura, thinking this was big. "Sakura, you're good on book knowledge. Has anything like this happened before?"
"Well, I..." Sakura halted. "Historically, clans got wiped out all the time. I mean, before the Ninja Village system, a defeated Clan was usually purged from existence. The Uchiha were known particularly for their violence during their early history.
"Over time, though, things became a lot less brutal. Standard policy became to not seek personal vendettas. And also to avoid needless collateral. Once a mission was over, a mission was over."
"A nice theory," said Madara, raising a hand as it began to snow. "In practice, it as a means the brunt of the damage got shunted over to ordinary people who had to pay for your lifestyle. So long as there are winners, there must always be losers."
"Why should we believe anything you have to say?" asked Neji. "This all might be a mere fabrication."
The Sharingan. Danzo had Sharingan all over his arm.
"Why not ask Danzo yourself? You seem to have gotten into his good graces," said Madara.
"Well, I'd love to, but I get the feeling you aren't here for a social call," said Naruto.
"Your feelings are correct," said Madara. "But if you fear me assaulting the Kage Summit, you need not worry. I stand nothing to gain by antagonizing the entire world. And everything to lose.
"I'm here to capture Jinchuuriki and have no other purpose."
"What do you want with the nine-tails?" asked Sakura.
"Nagato had a plan to obliterate the ninja system through sheer, brutal power," said Madara. "It certainly would have gotten results in the short-term. For my part, I have a more humane solution.
"The ultimate solution.
"The Infinite Tsukiyomi.
"It is a jutsu which, when used in the right circumstances, becomes impossible to escape or resist. Every person who looks upon it reflected over the moon shall be transfixed. They'll be sent to their own ideal world. Their bodies shall enter permenant stasis, and by use of other jutsu, can be sustained.
"I need only all of the tailed beasts to complete it."
"You killed Fuu for that?!" said Neji, bursting out in sudden anger. His expression was angrier than Naruto had ever seen.
He'd been close with her, hadn't he?
"Fuu?" asked Madara. "Oh yes, that pretty green-haired Jinchuuriki Kakazu took down. I gather you were a friend of hers. You needn't worry; once I activate the Infinite Tsukiyomi, she'll be there if you want here there."
"But she won't! She'll be nothing more than an illusion!" said Naruto in anger. "The real Fuu will still be dead! Just like the real Pervy-Sage will still be dead! And the real Asuma, and Nagato and all the other people you hurt to get here!"
"You never knew the real Fuu, Naruto. And neither did Neji or Sakura," said Madara. "Even if you had spent a year with her, however, it would not have allowed you to understand. The truth is, you never knew the real Rock Lee or Tenten or Guy. You are familiar with their bodies and project elements of yourself onto them.
Certain behaviors and objects become associated with them. They give you a feeling of nostalgia.
"But the truth of the matter is, you can't possibly know what they are feeling.
"Just look at your friendship with Sasuke. You believed that you had an unbreakable bond for years. But as you got wiser, you came to realize that you didn't know him at all. You merely projected what you wanted from him onto him."
"That doesn't mean I can't know the real him someday," said Naruto.
"Really?" asked Madara. "Isn't it possible that you cannot know anyone? As you 'get to know' someone your information on them increases. You are better able to predict the actions of the physical object you have imbued with yourself.
"Sakura Haruno and Neji Hyuga are your friends right now.
"But they are only Sakura and Neji within the parameters you have set for them. You would not view their corpses as them if they died because the real Sakura and Neji are within you, just as the real Sasuke is within you. You have not stopped being friends with Sasuke. All you have done is disassociated the warm body named Sasuke Uchiha from the real thing.
"And once you accept that, the Infinite Tsukiyomi is an ideal situation."
"What? So you'll just give everyone what they want?" asked Naruto. "A world like that would be filled with spoiled brats! I wanted to be Hokage when I was a kid, but if I'd been given the position, I wouldn't have deserved it!"
"It doesn't matter whether you deserve it or not," said Madara simply. "Your actions will no longer be able to negatively affect anyone else. Each person will be able to interact only with their own nature. Thus they will understand themselves. If the dream becomes a nightmare, it will change until the person reaches contentment."
"And what about all the people you killed to get here?!" said Neji. "The people who will never get to share in the dream because of what you've done?"
"You don't even know that I'm real," noted Madara. "For all you know, I'm just your shadow. Maybe nothing around us is real, maybe I'm actually your best friend, and you're simply hallucinating me as an enemy.
"How can you possibly know that the physical reality around you matters at all?
"I certainly can't, and I've been part of this particular nightmare a lot longer than you!"
"So you're going to shrug off killing my parents, destroying the Leaf, and hurting all those people! Like it's all fun and games?!" said Naruto. "Like this is just some corny TV show where everybody laughs and walks off the set!
"People make their own choices in life! They choose to be good or bad or to work hard or be lazy. And they have to deal with the consequences of their actions. I failed my entrance exam to the academy three times, and it made me feel really bad. But I wouldn't go back and change that just to avoid suffering.
"My failures, they made me who I am. I grew up because of the pain I experienced.
"But you... you won't let anyone grow up, will you? You'll just keep them trapped in a perfect little paradise! One with no suffering, no death, no choice, and no hope! Children will never grow up!
"Adults will never get old! Old people will never pass on!
"An endless parade of filler with no plot!"
"They won't know they don't have a choice because nobody will be awake to give them one," noted Madara. "I choose the greatest possible good for the greatest possible number of people. That is the end goal of all Leaf Ninja, in the end.
"How else could they justify their atrocities, save for the 'greater good.'"
"Meaning you're going to force them to experience that good, right?!" said Naruto. "You don't give a damn if they choose to do something stupid?!
"I did a lot of stupid things that got me into trouble! I painted the Hokage Monument and had to spend all day cleaning it off! I didn't get any benefit from it, and after the initial fun, it was really miserable! But if everyone had laughed and the paint had magically come off, there'd have been no challenge!
"I wouldn't remember that day. Especially if my prank went off without a hitch."
"How unfortunate for you," said Madara. "I must admit, when I murdered your Mother and Father, I never anticipated how much of a problem you'd become.
"You've far exceeded my expectations."
Naruto was done being nice. "And times up.
"Tobi, I'd love to have a whole Fourth Shinobi World War against you. I'd love thousands of people die, and it all comes down to a one-on-one fight anyway. But I don't have to. More importantly, you're not an official representative of any government anymore. And since Konan is in charge of the Land of Rain, you're not even the real leader of the Akatsuki.
"Or what's left of you anyway.
"You were basically a proxy which the Land of Rain used to get back at people. And now that Konan has dropped out and we've wiped out your members, you've got nothing left. And even if you did, you have no legitimacy anymore.
"You're not a leader, your not a terrorist. You're just a criminal with delusions of grandeur."
"So I'll make this simple.
"Neji, is that the real him?"
"He has the same chakra level as Hinata described," said Neji. "And given that he is no genjutsu specialist, I doubt he can bypass my Byakugan."
"Good," said Naruto. "Kill him."
They sprang forward as one and Madara parried a flurry of strokes from Naruto. Even as he did, he spun away from Neji. Even as he did, Sakura surged through him, swinging a fist, only to pass through. Neji went at him, but Madara leaped into the air, and a wave of flame came from his mouth toward them.
Neji sent a wave of water to match it, throwing up steam before Naruto rushed through him. Madara went intangible for a moment, and then as he stopped, Tenten and Lee shot from hiding. Tenten's fist passed through him, and Madara avoided a rapid series of attacks from Lee and Neji. Guy-sensei came out of nowhere from behind, and he was hard pressed.
Then they leaped back.
"Did you realize think I wasn't aware of your friends all along?" asked Madara. "Such pedestrian tactics are of little use against a chakra sensing specialist. And my intangibility can counter anything you throw at me."
"How are you going to deal with the explosive tags?" asked Tenten.
Madara halted. "Explosive-" He looked down and saw several explosive tags melded into his body. "That's not fair."
"Guy-sensei and Lee's attack was nothing but a diversion," said Tenten with a smirk. "I figured you'd discount me, so when I attacked, I left behind some explosive tags in you.
"The Legend of Tenten begins here!"
She activated the tags. Madara screamed as he exploded into a puddle of gore with a vast plume of fire rising.
"And the Akatsuki are done," said Tenten. "Now I am the hero."
"Tenten, what was that?" asked Sakura.
"Oh, Naruto and I came up with the strategy earlier," said Tenten.
"Wait, we did?" asked Naruto.
"Yeah, your shadow clone told me about your fight with Hinata, so we came up with a strategy," said Tenten.
"Indeed! We have successfully triumphed over adversity and saved the Leaf!" said Rock Lee.
"You see, Lee! With a combination of creativity and hard work, you can overcome anything!" said Guy-sensei, giving a thumbs up. "And now our enemy-"
And then Madara was behind Tenten. "Is dead?"
"Tenten!" said Neji.
Madara lashed out with a knife at her back, but before it could land, Neji got between them. His flak jacket turned the blade, and he lashed out with a hand to brush Madara's side. Madara groaned and leaped backward, even as Neji grabbed Tenten like a bridge and leaped away.
"Thanks, Neji!" said Tenten.
"He hurt him," said Naruto, seeing that Madara was favoring his side. And his left eye was left.
"... It's not intangibility," said Sakura suddenly.
"What do you mean?" asked Guy-sensei. "The only person to land a hit fair and square was Neji. Tenten had to use trickery."
"If you were going intangible, you could have turned your entire body right then," said Sakura. "But instead, you had to take the hit.
"That means either you have some kind of cooldown on it, which you don't, or the explosive tags would have gone with you. You're not really going intangible.
"Very interesting; you've given me a useful hint."
"As amusing as this is, I really think I should cut this short-" said Madara before standing up straight. Yet nothing happened. "What?!"
"Gentle fist is notable for being subtle," said Neji. "I sealed your chakra points during our earlier scuffle."
"Heheh, we got you good," noted Naruto.
"Neji, what's his chakra look like?" asked Guy-sensei.
"His chakra networks don't seem to change when he goes intangible," said Neji.
"Which means that even if his body isn't there. His chakra is there as a kind of phantom," said Sakura. "Sort of like of a shadow clone body part.
"I see.
"It appears even you can't get out when your chakra points are sealed.
"And if it were a cooldown, your chakra would have changed with you. Therefore, based on this evidence, I propose the following:
"You have the ability to transport parts of yourself away to a separate dimension. Your chakra network, however, stays behind as a kind of anchor."
"You..." Madara turned to run, but Lee was in front of him and kicked him to the ground. Guy-sensei landed a moment later.
"Which means your using a kekkei genki, a technique that is unique to you," said Sakura. "You can change your chakra network; only work with what you have. And nothing like this was in the Leaf Village's lists.
"And there aren't very many kekki genki which fit.
"Which means you're really a natural Uchiha. I did some research on them. It turns out their higher level Sharingan sometimes have unique abilities. All Uchiha are kept on record, and aside from Sasuke, all of them are confirmed KIA. So either you cheated death, most likely with the help of Orochimaru...
"Or you're someone reported dead earlier who survived.
"Not many of them had high-level abilities. You could claim to be Madara Uchiha, but he never manifested any abilities like that on record. You hate your own clan enough to exterminate it, so you probably weren't on good terms with them. And we know that you didn't know Itachi, or you would be dead too.
"But you can't be from Sarutobi's generation; he'd have recorded your exploits. Tobirama's records are very complete. And you've got to be around the same age as Nagato since you went into business around the same time.
"You're a war veteran, but there weren't very many Uchiha in the military at the time. Mostly they were ensuring order back home until the late stages of the war."
"Sakura, you don't..." Naruto looked up.
"Kakashi-sensei told us a lot of stories about you, Obito," said Sakura. "I'm glad he's not here to see what you've become."
"Does it really matter?" asked Obito. "There are alternate interpretations of Naruto that think I was the coolest guy."
Guy stepped back. "How... do you really mean... but then...
"I see."
"WHAT!" said Sasuke.
Sasuke Uchiha descended out of the trees in anger, landing with several others. There was a redhead and also an orange-haired, calm-faced guy. Last of all, there was an albino guy with bluish hair.
"I believe you were supposed you were supposed to stay in reserve, Sasuke," said Obito.
"You told us you were Madara Uchiha!" said Sasuke.
"I told you a lot of things, and you questioned none of them," said Madara. "Besides, whether it's true or not doesn't change anything. It is enough to know that I am a powerful Uchiha who can give you what you want."
At that moment, Kisame landed with a huge, dark-skinned man on his shoulder. "Well, I'm very happy to hear it changes nothing, Tobi. I was afraid there'd be yet another shocking revelation."
"Thank you, Kisame," said Madara. "Would you offer me your sword for a moment?"
Kisame did so, and Madara put a hand to the scaly thing. As he did, Neji attempted to move forward. However, as he did, Sasuke raised a sword, and they halted some ways away. The albino drew a blade, it was Zabuza's, and the redhead did nothing.
"Killer Bee is ours, sir," said Kisame. "Ganging up on him all at once was a far better idea than raiding the Kage Summit while outnumbered."
"I could have done it," said Sasuke.
"Of course you could, Sasuke," said Kisame. "Still, why all the deception, though? That's three names you've had now."
"Obito died a long time ago. The name I bore before is irrelevant," said Madara. "In any case, I think I can use jutsu now.
"Suffice to say I am Madara, insofar as I am completing the plan he never could. The disruption to my network is broken."
This was bad.
They'd captured another Jinchuuriki, and that left only Naruto left. Looking over to Sasuke, Naruto saw Neji was thinking the same thing. But Sasuke was in the way. "Sasuke...
"I'm guessing by your presence here that this isn't going to be the happy kind of reunion."
"Sasuke, you have fallen far if you are working with these villains," said Neji.
"You don't know what you're talking about," said Sasuke.
Naruto felt angry, suddenly. "The hell I don't!
"Neji and Choji nearly died trying to save you, and the Sound 4 all died trying to help you get to Orochimaru! You spat on all their sacrifices! Then you tried to kill Sakura and me and murdered Orochimaru on his sickbed!"
"You wanted Orochimaru dead anyway. What do you care?" asked Obito.
"That's completely different!" said Naruto. "I was his enemy!
"Sasuke made a deal with Orochimaru! You offered your body in exchange for power! He was completely straight with you and gave you power! And you repaid him for his help by murdering him in cold blood!
"Orochimaru was a snake, but he didn't deserve that. And if you didn't want to uphold your end of the bargain, you shouldn't have given your word!
"Sakura and I went through hell and back to get you a second chance, Sasuke! Do you even know how many strings I had to pull! And even so, we had to save you from Sai assassinating you! And you immediately tried to murder us afterward!"
"Tell it to someone who cares," said Sasuke.
"What are you doing here, Sasuke? What do you hope to gain by siding with the Akatsuki," asked Neji.
"I'm going to destroy the Leaf Village for what it did to me,"
"What do you mean by the 'Leaf Village' Sasuke?" asked Naruto, getting a very bad feeling.
"Every man woman, and child," said Sasuke. "I'm going to burn it all down.
"Just like what was done to my clan. If anyone tries to tell me what I was doing was evil, I'll kill their entire family and ask them if they wouldn't avenge me."
"What you're doing is evil," said Neji flatly. "Get over it, you loser."
Dead silence.
"That's a little insensitive, don't you think?" asked Obito.
It was bait.
And Sasuke to it, rushing forward in a rage. If it had been a normal ninja, he'd have cut them down in an instant. But Neji was more experienced and had been fighting in battles for years and had counted in this. He leaped over the blade, and Naruto guessed what he was doing.
Neji rushed forward toward Kisame, trying to save Killer Bee. Naruto sprang forward as well and found his way barred by the orange-haired guys. Their fists clashed, and Naruto found he was very strong. He saw Kisame dodge away from Neji, dodging and weaving, even as Sasuke came after him from behind.
But Lee came behind Sasuke while he was distracted and kicked his feet out from under him. Sasuke spun around and caught himself on the one hand. By this time, Neji was homing in on Kisame, who raised his sword to strike.
Naruto caught a punch from the larger guy and used the momentum to hurl him to the ground. As he did, Guy came at Kisame, and the shark man turned to fight him, dropping Killer Bee. Tenten hurled kunai at Obito, and he went intangible as Neji headed for the Cloud Jinchuuriki. Lee intercepted Sasuke as he tried to charge against, and the taijutsu masters went at it. Sasuke had more natural talent, but Lee was a specialist in his own element and faster too.
Right, all he had to do was grab him and pull him away and-
"Eight trigrams! Sixty-four palms!" cried Neji.
It all happened in slow motion. Neji Hyuga unleashed a barrage of gentle fist strikes to Cloud Jinchuuriki's chest. The blows hit lightly, but blood spewed from his mouth as virtually every organ he had was ruptured.
"Oh," said Naruto as everything went silent. "Oh, you weren't trying to rescue him."
"Hizashi Hyuga is avenged," said Neji. "Honor is satisfied."
"And the Cloud Ninja can't complain," noted Obito. "After all, it was the quickest and most efficient way to prevent an Akatsuki victory. Even if this little skirmish results in us taking Naruto, our plans are foiled.
"We'll have to track down and defeat one of the most powerful tailed beasts.
"Very clever. Kakashi would have made a similar move if not for Rin."
"...It won't do you any good," said Sasuke. "Those whole village is going to burn. So is this whole system."
"Would you settle for killing off Danzo, Homura, and Koharu?" asked Naruto. "I mean, Danzo pretty much forced his way into running things. And Homura and Koharu are artifacts that no one would mind losing."
"Naruto!" said Sasuke.
"Yeah, should you really be so flippant about killing off your own leadership?" asked the redhead, speaking for the first time. "What are you trying to suck up to Sasuke? Well, it won't work; Sasuke is way too smart for that kind of thing!"
"Oh, come on, Sakura," said Naruto. "You remember what Neji told us about Danzo before; that confirms his story. I don't hate the guy, but killing him and the elders off to get Sasuke off the Akatsuki would solve a lot of problems.
"It's at least worth considering. I mean, if you come over to our side now, Obito loses most of his fighting forces. We can arrange for you to get justice for the people who did the crime. Most of the people in the village don't even know the massacre took place.
"And, it's not like the Uchiha are the only clan that was ever discriminated against."
"I'm not taking any half measures. All of you are guilty," said Sasuke. "All those innocent civilians are reaping the benefits of Itachi's sacrifice. That means you can pay the price. You'll all know my pain."
"God, grow up, Sasuke," said Naruto. "Nagato had way better reasons for wanting the Leaf dead, and he wasn't so pretentious about it!"
Sasuke blinked. "Who the hell is Nagato?"
Naruto stared. "Pain. The best friend of Yahiko. Konan is his main agent.
"Mysterious dude with piercings who gives all the orders to the Akatsuki.
"I mean, I can understand not knowing everything about an organization you've joined. But I don't see how you could not even know about its top leaders."
"Do you know anything about the organization you work for, Sasuke?" asked Neji.
"Yes, this seems the sort of thing that could be read up on in a pamphlet," noted Tenten.
"We haven't had a formal orientation yet," said Kisame.
"Why does he need an orientation to understand the most basic elements of his faction?" asked Sakura. "Did you ask any questions before selling us all up the river, Sasuke?! Didn't you at least ask him for some evidence before you decided to kill us all!"
"Shut up," said Sasuke. "You're annoying."
The statement a long time ago would have broken Sakura. But she looked at Sasuke with an incredulous appearance. Did he realize how ridiculous that sounded from an adult?
But then, Sasuke had never grown up. But neither had he hung onto his youth. He was just a faded shadow of who he was before, with less sophistication and motivation.
Naruto remembered their confrontation. Sasuke had scoffed at all the people that died for him. He'd dismissed Naruto and his companions as 'kids playing ninja.' Naruto had thought he was deep in the darkness.
Maybe he was just an immature jerk who didn't care who he hurt.
"And you need to work on your one-liners," noted Obito, opening a portal. "Everyone through, now. We're done here."
"Sasuke, don't do this. Don't-" began Sakura.
"Save your breath," said Naruto. "He's just a child playing ninja."
The portal vanished, and when it passed, the Akatsuki were gone.